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Post by starrea on Jan 27, 2020 2:47:08 GMT
Time marched on slowly - what was probably minutes felt like hours to Kiona, who was still tangled beneath the cabinet. Her body was starting to painfully protest her hiding spot but her fear kept her rooted. She gripped the knife tightly, pointed towards the door. If someone swung it open, she was ready to fight her way out.
Time was moving impossibly slow and she wasn’t sure if Trys was going to turn her over or not. She felt stupid that she hadn’t considered that thought sooner - she couldn’t rely on anyone. Suddenly, the house didn’t feel so safe anymore.
The house was silent. She heard noise outside, but it didn’t seem to be coming her way. She peeked her head out of the cabinet, looking both ways before slipping out. Once she was out, she could hear the voices a little more clearly outside. She peeled through one of the windows, watching as the bounty hunter called his dog back to him. They seemed to be preparing to fight. If there was any time to run, it was now.
Fear propelled her forward. She dashed to the back door, quietly opening it and slipping through it and shutting it behind her. She didn’t want to alert them to her departure. She made sure to keep the house between her and then which would hopefully shield her from them seeing her. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she waded through the nearly knee deep snow, moving slowly at first but then running as she got further from the house.
The sky was darkening with the threat of storms but Kiona knew that she couldn’t turn back. She had more of a chance out here in the wilderness than she did with that bounty hunter. As if on cue, it started to snow. Hopefully, her tracks would be covered soon.
The food and water gave her renewed energy. But even stronger than that, fear pumped through her veins and to her muscles, pushing her to keep running. And she did keep running, even after she felt her muscles cramp and her lungs burn.
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Post by Elvander on Jan 27, 2020 4:12:35 GMT
As Ike engaged with her in combat, Trys dodged the first blow and swung back at him with the back blade of her sword as she went by. She was surprisingly quick, wielding her weapon with confidence. True, she wasn't a real warrior. Her strengths laid with ranging and hunting, but she'd been in enough tousles to know her way around. "What's this girl to you?" she growled at him as she lunged back at him, stabbing and swinging her weapon in a vicious, deadly series of practiced strokes. He was strong, and his ax was strong too. If he landed one strong blow, she would probably be done for. She hoped Kiona had escaped. She could give the girl that much, at least. Aloy snarled and as Ike came too close, she swiped a paw at him, claws out, trying to take out his hamstrings.
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Post by Val on Jan 27, 2020 4:55:51 GMT
Ike absorbed her quick strikes with the thick handle of his axe, getting forced backwards a few steps, "She's not just a girl," he snarled back, swinging the axe out in front of him to get her to back off, "She's a monster. A wolf in sheep's clothing." Literally. "Don't be fooled!" Distracted by the conversation, the puma was able to land a swipe across his calf, spraying blood across the pure white snow. He grunted and fell down to one knee, quickly swinging the butt of the axe backwards to wack Aloy in the snout. Hound sprung forward finally and began nipping at the cat's flanks to distract it. Turning his focus back on Trys, Ike drew his weapon back, but it was a false swing. Instead, he abandoned the heavy axe and lunged forward, tackling Trys at the waist into the thick snow.
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Post by starrea on Jan 27, 2020 17:40:48 GMT
The snow was coming down harder, making everything that much harder. Her hair was wet with clumps of snow and it stuck to her face and she had to keep brushing it out of her eyes. Even though she wasn’t dressed entirely inappropriately for the weather, her teeth chattered from the cold and her feet and hands were completely numb. She had slowed down, partly because of her fatigue and partly because the weather and deep snow forced her to.
She needed to find shelter if she was going to survive. She tried to look around, but the snow was coming down heavy enough that everything just looked white. She felt her eyes fill with tears as her mind raced, trying to think of a way out of this situation.
Her legs felt as if they were made of lead and it took more and more effort to convince them to keep moving forward. Her whole body pleaded with her to stop but she knew that if she did, she would freeze to death. If that kind stranger hadn’t fed her, this would have surely killed her by now. She briefly hoped that her pursuer hadn’t hurt the stranger but the thought was fleeting. She couldn’t spare to think about anything but her own survival.
By sheer luck, she stumbled upon a small rock formation that had a small overhang. There was a small space between two boulders and she squeezed herself in. There was barely any room to move, but it offered almost complete protection from the wind and snow except for a little bit that came in the top. It wasn’t warm or comfortable but it was better than braving the weather. Even though she just wanted to fall asleep, she forced herself kick her legs out and back again. She repeated the exercise, which generated just enough body heat to keep her from freezing to death - or so she hoped. The fear of falling asleep and not waking back up again was enough of a motivator to keep her moving long she thought her body would just give out.
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Post by Elvander on Jan 28, 2020 4:59:12 GMT
Trys had to end this quickly. Perhaps it was cheating, but she had no qualms using Aloy to subdue Ike. Even as Hound attacked, Aloy whirled around with a snarl and struck the hound across his side, sending him skidding. The powerful feline turned back to Ike, jumping on the tousling pair, trying to get her teeth into him, frenzied by the blood. Trys panted heavily as she felt her puma leap on top of them, grunting as the breath was forced out of her body. "The only wolf I see if you," she growled and jabbed her elbow as hard as she could into his groin, hoping to incapacitate him long enough to knock him unconscious. Her plan was to drag him into her house, tie him up, and keep him alive until the storm died down and she could move Kiona safely.
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Post by Val on Jan 28, 2020 6:09:15 GMT
Trys might've had the upper hand with the help of her cat, but Ike had the endurance of a grizzly bear. Hound was flung forcefully from the battle, tumbling through the snow until he was able to gain his footing. Tail tucked, he fled the scene with a limp, yelping like a struck puppy. Meanwhile, Ike had just managed to pin Trys into the snow before the weight of the puma landed squarely on his back. He fell on top of her, feeling the wind get knocked straight out of him. Planting his hands, he pushed upward with all of his might, managing to unflatten himself despite the barrage at his back. Just when he thought he might be able to turn the tables, he felt the hit to his groin and fell to the side, cursing with what little breath he had left. The world was spinning, but he was already starting to sit upright, all of his attention focused on the bigger threat at hand, Aloy, as she advanced on him.
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Post by Elvander on Jan 28, 2020 22:27:57 GMT
Trys had to admit, she was impressed with his stamina. But he was still just a man, and perhaps if he'd been facing Aloy alone, he might have won. As Ike focused on Aloy, Trys grabbed her bow, striking Ike on the back of his head. Not enough to kill him, just to knock him unconscious. With a grunt, Trys wrapped her arms around Ike's torso, beginning to drag him to the cabin. He probably wouldn't be out for long. But the driving snow and the howling wind was getting deadly, and she knew that he would know too that to leave now would be suicide. She grunted with effort as she shoved open the door, dragging him into her cabin. "Aloy, come," she called, and her puma slunk into the cabin, curling up by the fire like a big house cat, eyeing Ike with suspicion. Trys propped up her captive, beginning to tie him up with secure bindings. "Kiki?" She called, but heard nothing. She noticed her back door slightly ajar, and cursed. One thing after another today, wasn't it? And the stupid bloodhound had fled. Trys didn't like the thought of the poor creature out on it's own. "Stay," she told Aloy, and grabbed her gear before she went out the back, trying to track Kiona. She couldn't have gotten far. "Kiki!" She cried into the wind, "Here, puppy puppy!" she alternated her search calls, looking for both lost individuals. "Kiki, it's safe! You'll die out here!"
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Post by starrea on Jan 28, 2020 22:52:14 GMT
The wind carried Trys’s call to her amid the snow flurry. She must have not gone as far as she thought she had but it was snowing and she was disorientated. She could have circled right back to cabin for all she knew. She hesitated, though, not immediately coming out of her hiding place. Now that she knew someone was after her, everything changed. Of course Kiona knew they would hunt her, but she hadn’t actually seen any hunters on her trail. The thought had been purely hypothetical. Now it was all too real. Her trust wavered. The stranger had helped her and fed her, but what if the bounty hunter shifted her allegiance? She couldn’t imagine it would be hard to change the mind of a stranger.
Still, the idea of going back to the warm cabin overwhelmed her. Trys was right, she would probably die out here. She definitely didn’t want to freeze to death. She wiggled her way out of her rock shelter and back into the elements. The wind and snow assaulted her and she fought her way in the direction of Trys’s voice. She was right, she hadn’t gone very far. She could see the warm glow of the cabin after just a few minutes of walking and Trys nearby. She stumbled over to her, almost everything numb.
“I’m here,” She said, her tongue thick and her lips slow to form the words. She wanted to ask more but that would have to wait until they were inside.
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Post by Val on Jan 28, 2020 23:45:10 GMT
It didn't take long for Ike to stir back into consciousness. His eyes fluttered open and he groaned in response to the pounding at the back of his head. He took in his surroundings, quickly surmising that the stupid girl had run off and the heroine had gone to find her. Probably not a good idea on her part to leave him alone...or alive for that matter. He bared his teeth at Aloy and wasted no time in setting to work on his restraints. He began to yank on the rope, pulling so hard that he could feel his hands going numb. But it wasn't like him to give up. Rather, he would break his own wrists if he had to. Wedging his knees beneath him, he began pulling and pulling until an unsettling pop sounded and one of his now dislocated wrists became free. The pain was excruciating, yes, but failure was not an option. With one hand free, he set to work on the next. He swore he could hear the woman's calls above the howl of the wind. Was she looking for his dog? How strange to want to save both pathetic creatures. Her efforts would be futile- Hound was a skittish creature who only responded to him.
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Post by Elvander on Jan 29, 2020 3:57:20 GMT
Trys breathed a sigh of relief when she found Kiona, grabbing her by the arm. "Come, it's safe now. I think you'll have some explaining to do, once we get you warmed up and fed a bit more." She led the way to her cabin, shrugging her shoulders as Hound seemed to have vanished. She hoped the dog made it. She entered the cabin by the back once again, feeling the relief of the fire as it burned. Aloy had put herself between the doorway and Ike, hissing at him. "Ah, you're awake I see." She turned her back to toss more wood on the fire. "Now look, we have a storm rolling in. None of us are leaving any time soon, so I suggest we learn to get along."
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Post by starrea on Jan 29, 2020 4:11:31 GMT
Kiona fell into line behind Trys, carefully stepping into her footprints as they slowly moved towards the cabin. She couldn’t help but feel anxiety bubble up as they climbed the steps. She didn’t want to trust the stranger, but with this storm rolling in, she didn’t have a choice.
The heat hit her and she immediately felt her nearly frost bitten fingers start to burn. The sharp pain was enough to distract her momentarily from the threat sitting right across the room and when she finally noticed him, she almost raced back out the door. Her fingers fumbled for the knife she had stored in the waistband of her pants but they were too cold and stiff to grip it.
She anxiously looked between the man and the storm outside, trying to decide which was worse. Her gut had been right - the stranger had obviously delivered her to the hunter and she couldn’t trust anyone.
“You are not going to bring me back,” She said, ignoring Trys and keeping her eyes trained on the hunter. In that moment, she had never more serious in her life. She wasn’t going back.
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Post by Val on Jan 29, 2020 4:51:24 GMT
Ike had abruptly stopped when the women entered the cabin. He slumped against the wall, breathing heavily from the ridiculous struggle he'd been putting himself through. His eyes landed on Kiona for the first time and he was admittedly thrown off by what he saw. Pitiful, puny, and shivering. Not at all what one would imagine from an alleged dangerous beast. But, he knew that it was just a facade for what lay beneath the surface- like so many others tainted by magic, "If you keep running off, there will be nothing left to bring back," he growled. In the distance, desperate howls could be heard as Hound fared the unforgiving blizzard, wandering closer to the cabin. Ike's gaze shot to Trys, clearly desperate for a way out of his restraints, "Release me, woman, so that I may retrieve my dog," he demanded.
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Post by Elvander on Jan 29, 2020 17:42:03 GMT
Trys turned to face both princess and hunter, and stepped up beside Kiona. She gently placed her hand on the girl's back, offering her reassurance. "This bounty hunter is our prisoner, for the time being. The storm won't let us out, so we're all going to be bunk mates for awhile. But Kiki, I promise you that no harm will come to you under my roof." Her eyes turned to Ike, "And no harm will come to you either, so long as you behave." She gently guided Kiona down the hall towards her sleeping quarters. "You'll find some fresh, dry clothes in a chest at the foot of my bed. Take what you like," she advised her, and went back out into the main room. She leaned against the door frame, studying Ike. "I can call him in for you. I don't want him to perish either. But I'm not going to be untying you. So tell me how to get your dog in here, and I will do so as a courtesy."
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Post by starrea on Jan 29, 2020 18:36:14 GMT
Kiona was frozen in her spot like prey in the sights of a predator. She nearly choked when he asked to be freed and her gaze snapped to Trys. “Do not untie him, he cannot be trusted!” She said frantically, only finding relief when Trys did not move towards him to comply with his request. She allowed Trys to guide her down the hall, careful to keep her eyes on the hunter until she physically could no longer see him. Knowing he was in the house but out of sight made her nervous and she barely paid attention to what Trys said.
After Trys left, she numbly walked over to where she had pointed to and found clothes. At one time, she might have been picky about wearing someone else’s clothes but getting out of these disgusting, cold, wet clothes seemed like a dream come true right now. She quickly stripped off the clothes and pulled on some warm, lighter pajamas and some warm socks. She combed out her hair as best she could without a brush, pulling out five day’s worth of twigs and leaves and other stuff that had gotten caught up in her tangles.
She poked her head back out and cautiously walked back towards the main room. This time, she gripped the knife tightly, ready to use it should she need to. This hunter didn’t even know her. Maybe she could convince him to let her go free.
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Post by Val on Jan 29, 2020 22:29:18 GMT
Ike held her gaze as though it were a challenge. The part of him conditioned to ignore all emotions considered leaving his dog to die out of pure stubbornness. But...he supposed it would be a waste of a good tracker, "He responds to Hound," he relented gruffly. Cradling his injured hand, he cast Kiona a brief glare, noting her obvious reach for a weapon. Imagining the girl put up a fight was almost laughable. "Relax, princess. Your heroine will keep you safe," he told her, though his tone held a hint of mockery. The blizzard would end soon, and then he would find a way to turn the tables. Outside, Hound had wandered close to the cabin, aware that his master was inside but too fearful to approach.
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